Dive Review of Sorido Bay Resort in
Indonesia/Raja Ampat

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Sorido Bay Resort, May, 2009, by Fred Turoff, PA, USA ( Top Contributor 35 reports with 15 Helpful votes). Report 5018.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	I visited Sorido three years ago while it was partly under construction. With most of the building now completed, the resort is a beautiful place to visit, with native hardwoods used in the buildings and walkways, spacious bungalows with toilets and showers ensuite, plus plenty of lounging and office space. I noticed an improved selection and variety of food items for each meal from three years back. Fresh fruit and pastries were always available in the lounge area along with a variety of drinks. Owner Max Ammer was present much of the time (and full of stories), but also watched over his other nearby resort on the small island, Kri Eco. Leon and Claudia Pellarini Joubert (bittenbysharks.com) ran the dive and photo operations smoothly. We did two morning dives and one afternoon dive each day, with optional night dives when requested. After each dive, when we returned to the resort, we were met with freshly made fruit smoothies. The house reef, Cape Kri, is known for its prolific fish life, and offered a chance to see mandarinfish court during dusk hours by the dive jetty. A school of spadefish calls the jetty home, allowing photographers an excellent backdrop for schooling spadefish photos. This area is known for at least four species of pygmy seahorses, and I was able to photograph all four. Dive guide Dolphinus was amazing in his ability to find these tiny creatures. In addition to lots of small creatures, these pristine reefs feature an extremely large amount of fish life. Our one disappointment was a visit to Manta Point, where no mantas showed, so we headed to a relatively recently discovered reef where it seemed millions of baitfish swarmed and tried to avoid the predatory jacks hunting them. Wobbegon sharks were spotted on many dives, often hiding in niches filled with glassy sweepers. Nearby, schools of sweetlips crowded together to face the current and provide interesting portraits. A tridachna larger than me highlighted one site where current kept us tied to the reef while the fish stayed in place effortlessly. Schools of bumphead parrotfish cruised by on occasion, sometimes allowing a close approach. Four mobula rays passed overhead in formation on our first day. Sharks of several species passed us during a few dives, cruising the walls. Healthy corals abound. Nudibranchs, shrimp, cuttlefish, octopi and Napoleon wrasse were often spotted. A clown triggerfish was being cleaned by several shrimp, while a piece of crinoid remained stuck to its cheek. Barracuda schools passed nearby while ghost pipefish tried to melt into the background. On a night dive I found two species of octopi that I hadn’t seen before, a slender filefish colored green like the plants it hid in and a juvenile stonefish, looking like a black fuzzy rock. During a surface interval spent at a local village, we snorkeled around its jetty and found a fish soup made up of several species of silvery fish numbering beyond our ability to count. These schools looked like a wavy bottom that constantly changed shape. With the sun, earth and moon in alignment during our stay, the tidal swings were large, exposing many corals at low tide and making me wonder how they kept alive while baking in the sun. For most of our visit, the weather was sunny and warm, but plenty of shaded areas helped keep sunburn away. Boats also were shaded. The majority of dive sites were within 15 minutes, although a few, like Manta Point, required a longer trip. With water temp hovering around 84 F, all were comfortable. (Being thin, I wear a wet suit and hooded vest as I get cold easily.) Since no diving is done on Saturday, a trip to a nearby village and a hike through the jungle to seek the red bird of paradise is an option. We also visited an area called “The Passage” where rock islands like Palau create many secluded lagoons and offer climbing opportunities for adventurous souls. Seeing these mounds of old coral made me wonder when they were undersea or when the seabed lifted, turning coral heads into islands. The week I was there we had 10 guests, all of whom spoke English. Countries represented were Belgium, US, Indonesia, Germany, while Max is originally Dutch, Leon is South African and Claudia is Italian. All workers were either locals or from other parts of Indonesia. Max recently obtained a small seaplane, which he flew several times while we were there, once on an unsuccessful attempt to direct us to dugongs with which we hoped to snorkel. Although there were occasional currents that made diving and photography a challenge, for the most part the warm water, visibility and prolific life made each dive a wonderful experience. I’ll return again in the future, hopefully with some friends who have yet to see the wonders of Raja Ampat, a part of the world that every diver should visit. Due to plane schedules, it took me three days to get there from the east US. Coming home I spent a day in Bali to relax before the 30-hour trip home from Denpasar. Don’t let the travel time to and from worry you – it’s worth it.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	BVI, USVI, Saba, St. Lucia, Bonaire, Little Cayman, Cayman Brac, Costa Rica, Coco Island, Revillagigedos, Sea of Cortez, Palau, Yap, Red Sea, Sipadan, PNG, Indonesia
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, dry	Seas	calm, currents
Water Temp	83-86°F / 28-30°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	30-80 Ft/ 9-24 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	suggested time limit but guide stayed with us until we were ready to finish. sport dive depth limit was mentioned, but my deepest dive was to 86 feet.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	1 or 2
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	Rinse tanks on jetty where boats docked. Cameras kept in rooms, where charging stations, table and shelves offer work and storage space. Staff offered to carry cameras, but I use this as exercise. On boats, cameras protected and handled well but no rinse tank. A room on the land-end of the jetty may become a camera room.

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Dive Review of Sorido Bay Resort in Indonesia/Raja Ampat

Sorido Bay Resort, May, 2009,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Sorido Bay Resort in
Indonesia/Raja Ampat